Immersing Ourselves in Rome

Written By: Kim - Aug• 02•11

On our second day in Rome, we missed breakfast time at our hotel. This was the best thing that could have happened. We ventured back by the gelato place, which really was a combination deli and pastry shop.

Breakfast at our favorite cafe. ©Mike Howard

Breakfast was to be here and they offered omelets, fresh fruit and toast. An espresso was on the menu for Mike as well. No “American coffee”  even though they listed it for tourists. This looked like a family-owned business and the sister of the owner took to my 13-year-old son despite the language barrier. She encouraged him to eat more than he normally does for breakfast and offered him a panini with tomatoes, which he does not like. He gladly ate the whole thing.

The electric mini-bus 116 was our first foray into Italian public transportation.  Unfortunately, the street stop names do not coincide with the tourist attractions nor villas which landmark major areas. Clearly, this system was not designed by an editor. So, after an hour of riding, with two stops where the driver literally walked away from his bus for some kind of break, we got off.

The Pantheon's ceiling. ©Mike Howard

Once we got our land feet, we made our way to the Pantheon, the Palatine and the Colosseum.

The Colosseum ©Mike Howard

We walked by many pastry and food shops carrying truffle oil, cheese, meat and rainbow-colored pasta. I could not wait to cook in Praiano in the Almalfi Coast.

We really crammed too much in the first day, but all of these sites are somewhat close to each other. But five hours and our hotel room later, I remembered the advice of my friend Sabine: There are no public restrooms in Rome.

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